______The Pastor's Corner___________________________

ANGEL'S WINGLIVING IN THE ETERNAL NOW

Arthur Gordon has written a beautiful article called "Message from the
Sea." It is about an episode in his personal life. One night he had a
problem that would not go away. He called a friend and went over to see him. After
talking with him for a while, Gordon saw his problem in a new light. Grateful
for his friend's help, Gordon said to him, Ken, you have a deep calmness and
wisdom. Where do you get it?

Ken thought for a moment, as if debating with himself whether
or not to answer the question. Then he opened the desk drawer, pulled out a
cardboard box, and set it on a desk. If I have the qualities you say I do, they
come from what is inside this box. In my youth I was Wall Street's 'wonder
boy.' Everything I touched turned to gold. I made money fast and spent it
faster. I married my wife, not because I loved her, but because she helped my
image. Back then I was incapable of loving anybody except myself.
Then the market crashed. I went from being a millionaire to being a pauper. I
went off alone to a beach cottage and began to drink. After three days of heavy
drinking, I decided to end it all. I'd simply swim out into the ocean as far as
I could. The rest would take care of itself.

Early the next morning I got up and went down to the
beach. It was a good morning for my plan. The weather was stormy and the waves
were big. When I got to the water, I looked down and saw something in the sand.
It was white and sparkling. I bent over and picked it up. It was what you see
in this box. With that Ken removed the lid from the box. Inside was a
beautiful, delicate seashell. It was almost like tissue paper.

As I stood on the beach, holding the shell, I couldn't
understand how it had survived the storm. How could it be scooped up by the waves,
swept along by the storm and slammed into the beach without breaking? Then
suddenly the answer came to me. It was because the shell had not fought against
the sea and the waves. It had floated along with them and accepted them as
facts of life. That shell said Ken gave me new insight into how to live. Instead of growing angry at life's bad breaks and
instead of worrying about life's problems, I should simply float along with
them and accept them as facts of life.

All the anger and worry in the world won't change them
anyway. When I left the beach I took the shell with me; I've had it ever since.
What is the shell called? Gordon asked. Ken
smiled and said "it's called and Angel's Wing.

I like this story. It
illustrates the message of today's Gospel. (8th Sun of Ordinary time, Year A)
Jesus is saying that we should not worry about material
things.
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life.
Can you, by worrying add a single moment to your lifespan....
Do not worry about tomorrow...tomorrow will take care of itself.

The point that Jesus made to his disciple (and now to us) is the same point that
the shell made to Ken....
The shell was no match for the ocean and the storm. So it didn't worry about
them..
It didn't grow angry because of them. It simply accepted them as facts of life.

A few centuries ago a French priest, Jean Pierre de Causade wrote a book (still
very popular) called 'Abandonment to Divine Providence." One paragraph
stated: "I concentrate on the present moment, thinking only of my duty and
suffer all that the master sculptor inflicts on me without knowing his purpose
or fretting about it."
Doing this is what modern writers refer to a living in the 'eternal now.'
Some people waste a lot of time and energy reliving their yesterdays with much
second-guessing and regret. Yet being obsessed by the past changes nothing.

Others spend a lot of time worrying about tomorrow. If you reflect on what you
worry about you will come to the realization that most of what you worry about
are the things that didn't happen.
And so we are urged not to look backwards or forwards but to live 100% in the
present.....to be fully present to the person you are with or the task you are
doing ignoring all distractions.

People tend to worry about distractions especially when praying. It happens to
everyone for our concentration is limited. Thomas Keating, a Cistersian monk in
Snowmass, Colorado gave me a most helpful hint in regard to distractions: Think
of distractions like a boat flowing down a river. When you become aware of the
distraction don't get on the boat but gently return to your prayer.

And so to live peaceful and sane lives we are call to live in the eternal
now....as the psalmist says:
'Be Still and know the I am God.'

The second part of the Serenity Prayer used by all 12-step programs is also
helpful:
'Lord help me to accept the things I cannot change.' It is not just a prayer
but an attitude to life. The only person I can change is myself. When one
accepts this it is much easier to live in the present moment.

As a Lenten practice what could be better than living in the present
moment...the eternal now.

I would like to finish with a poem from that most prolific author 'anonymous.'

OUT IN THE FIELDS The little cars that fretted me
I lost them yesterdayAmong the fields, above the sea
Among the winds at playAmong the lowing of the herds.
Among the singing of the birds
The humming of the bees.
The foolish fears of what may happen,
I cast them all away.
Where ill thoughts die and good are born
Out in the fields with God.

It may not be possible for us to be out in the fields but we all need a sacred
space, a holy place where we can encounter the living God. Where we can be still with God in the present
moment...the eternal now.